GRASSLAND - After 40 years of brightening his property along Highway 63 with Christmas lights every season on his house and all the outbuildings, Hugh Witney received a Dec. 22 surprise from the grateful members of the Grassland community.
More than 100 people of all ages showed up to gather around an outdoor campfire and sang Christmas carols and sipped hot chocolate to show their gratitude for the beautiful holiday sight provided by the 85-year-old Witney over the last three generations.
Tanya Hafner, Witney’s niece, said it’s a sight she has looked forward to every year since she was a little girl.
“It’s not Christmas without seeing Uncle Hugh’s lights,” Hafner said. “He’s been doing it now for a very long time, and I never get tired of looking at them.”
Len Grygus was the lead organizer for the event to honour Witney.
“I’ve been thinking of a way to do so for a number of years, and this event is long overdue,” Grygus said. “He puts on a heck of a show every year when he lights up his property, so I figured this year was a good time to put on a show for him. It’s well deserved for a guy who puts in countless hours to decorate his property.”
Athabasca County reeve Larry Armfelt remarked that the community needs more Hugh Witney’s in their midst.
“The world needs more Hugh Witney’s,” Armfelt said. “Somebody who goes out and does a good job just for the benefit of people he doesn’t even know deserves to get some recognition.”
He added that the turnout shows how much the community appreciates his work.
“I would say that every driver going along Highway 63 really appreciates this,” Armfelt said.
Athabasca County Ward 6 Coun. Penny Stewart said the organizers did a great job putting this together.
“Kudos to Len for spearheading this event,” Stewart said. “Witney has been putting the lights up for the community for many years, and he’s an amazing man. It was great to see the strong support for his efforts shown by this wonderful community.”
Fourteen-year-old Justin Chamzuk raised more than $250 on behalf of the student council at Grassland Community School.
“I raised the money for Hugh Witney because I have known that he had the lights for 40 years and I figured that we should put money back into the community,” he said.
“I have seen the lights up my whole life, and I look forward to seeing them every year.”
Witney said the surprise was a wonderful gesture from the community in general.
“It was really something,” Witney expressed. “It was nice to see everyone come out.”
When it comes to putting up the lights, he said he looks forward to doing it every year.
“Once you start this you can’t stop,” Witney added. “Some little kids really enjoy it, and that keeps it going for me. Me and the family will be doing it as long as I possibly can.”
Gyrgus said he was really thankful for all the people who came out to support this initiative.
“The people in the community were the ones who made this event as amazing as it was,” he added.
